No thongs for swimmers in 'Mayberry with a beach'

KURE BEACH, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina town that the mayor called "Mayberry with a beach" has banned swimmers from wearing thongs.

Kure (kyoor-EE) Beach Mayor Dean Lambeth says "we're going to keep this as close to Mayberry with a beach as you can keep it," referring to the idyllic Southern community portrayed on the 1960s TV series "The Andy Griffith Show."

The Star-News of Wilmington reports that the town council voted Thursday to add a ban against the revealing swimwear to its existing ordinance against nudity.

The move came after the police chief received an e-mail earlier in the week asking if the town's existing nude bathing ordinance allowed thongs.

The ordinance bans nudity or "insufficient clothing," and the man wanted to know if thongs were allowed for both men and women.